


Acquired Taste

by bubblygoo



Category: Eyeshield 21
Genre: F/M, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-27
Updated: 2019-12-27
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:17:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21984193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bubblygoo/pseuds/bubblygoo
Summary: Who in their right mind would want to date Anezaki Mamori?
Relationships: Anezaki Mamori/Hiruma Youichi
Comments: 5
Kudos: 42





	Acquired Taste

It’s public knowledge that Anezaki Mamori is off-limits. No one in their right mind would risk the consequences that would almost certainly happen to someone who tried to ask her out.

First, the entire Saikyoudai football team would come after you, starting with Ikkyu, who would interrogate you while walking backwards. 

“Why do you like her? Is it because of her smile? Her smarts? Her legs?” Ikkyu would demand. “Well, get in line buddy! I mean - you clearly don’t know her at all!”

Then Juumonji would walk by sling a casual arm around your shoulder. “Don’t mind Ikkyu. He barely knows Anezaki, either.” Juumonji would ignore Ikkyu’s protest that he did, too, know Mamori-san, and would continue, “Not like me. Anezaki and I go way back. She helped train me in Deimon - you know, to be a lineman?” And the Juumonji would tighten his grip.

Taka and Yamato would come together, with Yamato all smiles. Taka would silently read and unsettlingly turn a page every once in a while. He let Yamato do the talking.

“Mamori-san is just incredible. I never get tired of the story of how she joined the Devil Bats. I can’t believe that she learned so much about football management by herself in just two years at Deimon! She’s got a brilliant mind, she’s organized, and the team loves her. She’s truly all you could ask for in a manager. Don’t you agree, Taka?”

Taka would nod without lifting an eye from his book. “She’s a valuable member of the team,” he would say.

“Say,” and here Yamato would get startlingly close, startlingly fast, “We’re always looking for new recruits. Are you interested? Taka and I would be happy to show you the ropes.”

Agon wouldn’t say anything. He would just look at you for the first time in the two years you’d been attending Saikyoudai together. And that would be enough.

Then there were members of other teams. Kobayakawa Sena and Kaitani Riku from Enma would find you in the hallway of the business school, twin blurs cornering you in an alcove.

“Oh, um, excuse me!” Kobayakawa would say. He never quite shook off his shyness, despite all his growth and success.

Taro Raimon and Taki Suzuna would swoop in, with Taki asking questions rapid-fire that you never seem to answer right (as Monta would let you know). Kaitani would stay mostly quiet except to get a barbed remark here and there. Kobayakawa would be not quite sure of what to say but ever suspicious of you and nodding along when Taki took significant pauses. At the end of their pop quiz, Taki would shake her head.

“No good,” Taki would say. If you asked why, she would only tell you, “You’re just not right for Mamo-nee-san.”

”You’re too quiet,” Taro would say. 

“Too boring,” Kaitani would add.

Kobayakawa would chew his bottom lip before saying, “You’re too... laid back.”

And then Kobayakawa would apologize sincerely, bowing his head down low, and awkwardly say goodbye on behalf of Enma.

So who in their right mind want to date Anezaki Mamori?

—-

“Who wouldn’t? She’s perfect,” you say to your best friend, who rolls his eyes. Everything that you thought would happen to you did, and your buddy was there to witness it all. He’s given up on arguing with you on what he calls your stupid plan.

“Trust me, it’ll work like a charm,” you say, confident. 

Here’s your plan: you’re getting cream puffs from Kariya, your buddy is tracking Mamori down at the football clubhouse, and you’ll meet both of them a safe distance away to finally ask Mamori out.

First, the cream puffs. Everyone knows Mamori loves Kariya cream puffs. At the bakery, you ask for three. That’s a lot for a girl, but you know Mamori’s a big eater when it comes to cream puffs.

“Sorry, we’re all sold out,” the person behind the counter says.

You weren’t expecting this. It’s late Saturday afternoon, sure, but Kariya closes late and never runs out of cream puffs.

“Are you - are you making any more?” you ask incredulously. 

“We’ll be sold out for the rest of the day. We’re closing soon for a private event - this is all we’ve got,” the person says, pointing to the case, which held a few slices of cake and a lonely croissant. 

So step one didn’t go as planned, but you walked out with a slice of strawberry whipped cream cake. Not quite what you wanted, but close. You don’t think Mamori’s the type to reject you just because you couldn’t give her exactly what she wanted.

Step two is to find Mamori. It’s getting dark fast now, as usual around late fall. You call your buddy, who should have found Mamori by now.

“Hey-“ you say, stopping when you hear someone scream in the background.

“What was that?” you ask, ear still ringing.

“Uh, things got kind of complicated. Meet me at the football club house.”

“I can’t do that, dude! Ikkyu and them are there.”

“Don’t worry. They won’t notice that you’re here,” your buddy says, and then he hangs up before you can get a word in edgewise.

You see what he means when you arrive, box of cake in hand. There’s what looks like a mini-festival surrounding the club: food stalls are lined up along the path, and people are swarming in and out of the club house, which is decorated with balloons and streamers in Saikyoudai colors.

Your friend waves you down when he sees you.

“What is all this?” you ask. 

Before your friend can answer, something explodes.

It’s fireworks. 

“That’s gotta be illegal,” you hear someone say.

Taki comes out of the clubhouse, pulling Mamori along by her hand. The other Enma students stream out from behind, encouraging Mamori, who looks flustered. Then she looks up at the sky. Her expression changes to awe and then to an exasperated happiness. Watching her look like that makes you feel strange.

You choose then to make your move.

“Mamori-san!” 

You ignore your buddy, who tries to grab you and hold you back.

You brush your hair back. That’s your best move. It gets Mamori’s attention, though she’s still distracted by the fireworks. You ignore the glares from the Enma students.

“I’ve been looking for you all day.”

“Oh,” said Mamori. “What for?”

“Well, I was hoping to ask you out.” You hold the box from Kariya out. “I was going to get cream puffs, but they were all sold out. I hope you don’t mind. I’ve admired you for a long time.”

“Oh.” Mamori’s look dims. You’re not sure where you went wrong. “I’m very flattered, but I’m... I’m not looking for that right now.”

“Is it because you’re too busy studying? Everyone knows you’re one of the smartest girls in our class year,” you say, trying at flattery. Mamori’s look grows even more distant.

“No,” Mamori says simply. “I’m... I’m just not interested. I’m sorry.”

She turns around and you catch a glimpse of her face before she goes back to the clubhouse. She looks unhappy.

“Now you’ve done it,” Kobayakawa sighs. “Mamori-nee-san!”

Kobayakawa leaves a cloud of dust in his wake. 

Kaitani looks you straight in the eye. “Pathetic,” he says and then leaves behind a cloud of dust twin to Kobayakawa’s.

“Shoo,” Taki says before she and Taro leave.

Your buddy comes up to you and grabs you by the elbow. “Come on, let’s go.”

“I don’t get why she’s upset. I’m the one who got rejected! I even got her cake.”

“Excuse us!” you hear someone say. It’s your only warning as a huge man carrying an impossibly multi-tiered tower of cream puffs goes by, followed by Hiruma Yoichi, the scariest person at Saikyoudai. You practically dive out of his way. The huge guy puts the cream puffs down on an empty table in the center of the food stalls.

“That’s the last batch for the night,” says the large man. Now that the cream puffs aren’t blocking his face, you see that it’s Kurita, one of the Enma football players. “What a great turn out, Hiruma!”

Hiruma is not impressed. “Each year, she eats more than the year before. No more for you, Fatty - these need to last. Where is she? The brats were supposed to get her here.”

Hiruma looks around and sees you. You try not to quake in your shoes. Luckily Hiruma’s attention passes as Taki returns.

“Hey, Cheerleader, where is she?” Hiruma asks Taki.

“Mamo-nee-san says she’s going home,” Taki said. “She’s packing up her stuff.”

“What?” Hiruma asks, irritated. “What for? She doesn’t have anything scheduled tomorrow.”

Taki leans in and whispers something into Hiruma’s ear. Whatever she said makes Hiruma focus his attention on you again and your box from Kariya. You get a chill down your spine as Hiruma’s eyes narrow. He gives you a look that makes you feel very small. Then he turns to face the clubhouse.

“Manager! Hey, Manager!” Hiruma yells.

Mamori emerges from the clubhouse, a pack on her shoulder.

“Yes?” Mamori asks crisply. 

The buzz around the crowd dies down. Kobayakawa, Kaitani, and Taro stick their heads out of the doorway. You recognize the members of the Saikyoudai football team staring at you as you unwittingly become part of the center of attention, thanks to your proximity to Hiruma.

“You’ve got to blow out the fucking candle,” Hiruma says, smiling with all his teeth. 

The cashier from Kariya who told you the store was closing early walks up the path with a huge, three-tiered cake. He puts it carefully beside the tower of cream puffs and lights a single candle. He places the candle on the top tier and steps back.

The cake is elegant and simply designed, with white frosting, white chocolate shavings, and fresh fruit. The effect of the tall cake beside the tower of cream puffs is impressive, one making the other look even more incredible.

Mamori has that look again, the one that changes from awe to pleased exasperation. 

“If you don’t hurry, the candle will melt and we’ll all be eating wax,” Hiruma says, grinning as though he liked the idea of that.

Mamori huffs and then walks over to the cake. The crowd watches in hushed silence as Mamori leans in and then cheers after she blows the candle out in one try. 

The Kariya staff that was waiting in the wings steps forward to help cut the cake and hand out plates. 

“What did you wish for, Mamori-nee-san?” Kobayakawa asks.

Mamori snags a cream puff and pops it in her mouth before answering. 

“A kiss from my boyfriend,” Mamori says. She licks cream off of her lip. 

Kobayakawa’s face is visibly red even with the evening lighting. He takes a hasty step back.

“Why would you want something so useless?” Hiruma says. “You should have wished for something useful. Like a private jet,” Hiruma drawls.

“I really hope he didn’t get her that,” a bearded man mutters to Kurita. 

“Well, sometimes I feel so happy that I want to kiss someone in front of all my friends,” Mamori says. “A boyfriend would be useful for that.”

Hiruma and Mamori stare at each other. Everyone around them, including you, greedily watches the drama unfold.

Hiruma says nothing. After a beat, he spits his gum into a napkin.

“That’s disgusting,” Mamori says.

“Shut up and get your damn kiss,” Hiruma says.

Mamori’s lips twitch, and then they kiss. The crowd erupts with cheers.

“Finally,” you hear someone say. You think it’s Juumonji, but you’re too busy trying to process what’s happening in front of you to confirm. 

First, you did not peg Mamori or Hiruma the type to kiss in public. You were very wrong.

Second, it is obvious that this is not their first kiss.

Mamori looks flushed but pleased as they let go. Hiruma grins back. You’ve never seen him look that way before.

“You’re all going to pay for this,” Hiruma says to Mamori. “Tomorrow, everyone runs until they collapse.”

Mamori smiles like the cat that got the cream. “Don’t be mean,” she says. “We’ve got a game the next day.”

“Tch.“

The crowd fills in the empty space around the huge cake. You’re forgotten, just another spectator to a scene you weren’t expecting at all. The box of cake from Kariya goes in the trash. 

As you take a plate of cake and cream puffs and a glass of champagne, you start to realize that the answer to who would want to date Anezaki Mamori is no one.

No one in their right mind, that’s for sure.

——-

You meet your buddy in lecture the next day. He’s got a big grin on his face as he pats you on the back.

“Hey, you win some, you lose some,” he says.

Mamori and Hiruma come in together the next day and sit next to each other like they always have. Mamori takes out her notebook to take notes by hand while Hiruma opens his laptop. In hindsight, it’s obvious that there was always something between them. You wonder why you didn’t see it before.

“I’m telling you, he’s hot!” someone whispers behind you.

“You’re crazy. You’ve got to be. Who in their right mind would want to date Hiruma?” someone answers.

You think about saying something but decide to let it go.

They’ll find out soon enough.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
